BNP set to nominate Mirza Fakhrul as presidential candidate on 12 Aug

The ruling BNP is set to nominate Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir, secretary general of the party, as its candidate in the upcoming presidential election slated for 20 August, according to multiple members of the party's standing committee.

Prime Minister and BNP Chairman Tarique Rahman has finalised Fakhrul's nomination and the party is expected to make an official announcement on 12 August, several party insiders confirmed today (9 August).

Fakhrul currently serves as the minister for Local Government, Rural Development and Cooperatives.

Chief Whip of the parliament Nurul Islam Moni and BNP Senior Joint Secretary General Ruhul Kabir Rizvi today collected two nomination forms from the Election Commission headquarters in Dhaka's Agargaon.

Meanwhile, the Jamaat-e-Islami-led opposition alliance has nominated Liberal Democratic Party Chairman Colonel (retd) Oli Ahmad as its presidential candidate, raising the prospect of the first contested presidential election in nearly 35 years. 

Opposition Chief Whip and NCP Convenor Nahid Islam announced the candidature at a press conference at the opposition leader's official residence on the capital's Minto Road on the day.

After being nominated, Oli said, "I am grateful to the entire nation, to everyone in the 11-party alliance and to all our leaders and activists. Through you, we want to tell the people that we will never betray the nation from where we stand. We will always stand by the people and work to protect their interests," he said at the same press conference.   

On 6 August, Election Commission Senior Secretary Akhtar Ahmed said nomination forms must be submitted by 13 August, with scrutiny scheduled for 16 August and the deadline for withdrawal of candidature set for 18 August.

Akhtar said that the voter list for the presidential election has already been prepared.

If more than one valid candidate remains, lawmakers will vote in parliament from 2pm to 5pm on 20 August.

The Jamaat's decision to join the race has brought the 1991 presidential election back into focus when MPs last voted to choose between rival presidential candidates.

Bangladesh had restored the parliamentary form of government in 1991 following the fall of HM Ershad in 1990. 

In October 1991, then-ruling BNP had nominated Abdur Rahman Biswas for the presidency, while the main opposition Awami League fielded former chief justice Badrul Haider Chowdhury.

After being elected as president, Biswas served until 1996 and became the first president to complete a five-year term.

Unopposed ever since

No presidential election since the Biswas-Badrul contest has required lawmakers to choose between competing candidates.

In 1996, former chief justice Shahabuddin Ahmed, nominated by the Awami League, was elected without contest.

After the BNP came to power, AQM Badruddoza Chowdhury was elected president unopposed in 2001. His tenure ended the following year when the BNP parliamentary party had expressed no confidence in him.

The then BNP-nominated Iajuddin Ahmed Sircar, who became president without contest in 2002. He remained at Bangabhaban until February 2009, staying beyond his original five-year tenure amid a political crisis and a delay in the parliamentary election.

The pattern continued after the Awami League returned to power following the 2008 general election.

Zillur Rahman was elected president unopposed in 2009. Following his death in March 2013, Abdul Hamid was elected president without a rival in April that year.

Hamid was elected for another term in 2018, again unopposed.

In 2023, Awami League nominee Mohammed Shahabuddin also faced no opponent and was elected president unopposed.

Shahabuddin resigned from the presidency on 24 July this year, creating the vacancy that led the Election Commission to schedule the upcoming election.

Under Article 48 of the constitution, the president is elected by the parliament members.